– Will inform interested companies of feasibility

REVIVING the sugar industry will be no easy task for local authorities, as they battle with financial difficulties, but the industry may attract the attention of British investors.
British High Commissioner to Guyana, Greg Quinn, is expected to visit the Guyana Sugar Corporation Inc. (GuySuCo) estates soon, following which he will inform interested British companies on whether it is feasible to invest.

“I am interested in seeing the estates for myself. That would then allow me to be better informed with regards to any discussions with interested companies in the UK,” the High Commissioner told the Sunday Chronicle during an interview on Saturday.

GuySuCo produces sugar at an average cost of US$0.35 per pound, while world market prices have averaged US$0.16 per pound. Although the sugar industry has been considered a liability for years, the new People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) administration is hoping to revive the industry, especially for the social and societal benefits.
In 2017, the APNU+AFC Coalition Government had announced the closure of several sugar estates across the country, leaving thousands of persons without a job or source of income.
The move saw four sugar estates being closed and 7,000 sugar workers losing their jobs.

The new government, however, plans to re-open those shuttered estates and simultaneously rejuvenate the industry through ‘innovation’ and ‘prudent’ management and interventions which could also come from the private sector.

“We alone as a government cannot do it and that is why we are looking at the private sector to help sustain sugar,” Minister of Agriculture, Zulfikar Mustapha had noted.
A number of private investors have already expressed an interest in sugar, said Minister Mustapha, in a recent report.
These private investors are expected to work collaboratively with the government to rebuild the sugar industry.